The transcendent Spirited Away stage play is coming to theaters soon

The gorgeous Spirited Away stage play is getting a theatrical release from GKids. The movie version of the play was filmed during the production’s 2022 run at the Imperial Theatre in Tokyo. Based on the critically-acclaimed Studio Ghibli film of the same name, Spirited Away tells the story of a young girl named Chihiro who finds herself trapped in a mysterious bath house inhabited by spirits; her parents have also been sucked into the spirit world, and so Chihiro must save them (and herself) and return to the human world. The stage production uses puppets and practical effects to recreate the movie’s iconic characters and beautiful visuals.

The theatrical release will have two separate filmed performances, one for each cast, as most of the roles were double cast. Notably, character actor Mari Natsuki, who originally voiced bath house owner Yubaba and her twin Zeniba in the film, returns to both roles in the stage adaptation, with voice actor Romi Park taking up the mantle in the second cast.

Spirited Away: Live on Stage will come to theaters sometime in the spring of this year. Check out the previously released production photos to get a sense of how it looks. The official poster is below:

Image: Toho Stage/GKids